Patent filings

Relative to its GDP, Finland files the most patents at the world's main patent offices—in America, Europe and Japan—according to the OECD. South Korea's ranking is impressive: it filed very few patents a decade ago. China's patents are too few to be included in our chart, but are increasing by around 30% a year. Because applications are disclosed only 18 months after filing, 2003 is the latest year for which data are available.